Common Idioms
Idiom
Absence makes the heart grow
fonder
Actions speak louder than words
Add fuel to the fire
Against the grain
A leopard can’t change his spots
All bark and no bite
All ears
All in one piece
All in the same boat
All that glitters is not gold
All thumbs
An arm and a leg
A penny saved is a penny earned
A picture is worth a thousand words
Apple of my eye
At the drop of a hat
Back to square one
Back to the drawing board
Baker’s dozen
Bark up the wrong tree
Bear in mind
Beating around the bush
Behind someone’s back
Bend over backwards
Better late than never
Better safe than sorry
Birds of a feather flock together
Bite off more than you can chew
Bite the dust
Bite your tongue
Break new ground
Break the ice
Break the news
Breath of fresh air
Meaning
Being away from someone makes you miss them more
It is better to actually do something than to just talk about
doing it
Doing something to make a bad situation even worse
To go against what everyone else is thinking or doing
You cannot change who you are/someone else is
When someone threatens to do something but doesn’t actually
do it
Ready to listen
Whole; still together
When everyone faces the same issues or problems
Just because something looks good doesn’t mean it really is
Clumsy and awkward
Costs a lot of money
By not spending money, you are saving it, little by little
A visual presentation is more descriptive than words
Someone who is very special to you
Willing to do something quickly
Having to start all over again
When you try to do something and fail so you start over again
13
To go after the wrong person or thing
Think about something; consider
Not talking about the main topic
To say or do something to someone without that person knowing
it
Will do whatever it takes to help
It’s better to be late for something than to never show up at all
It is better to be cautious and not do something than to do it
and get hurt
People with the same ideas or values tend to hang around each
other
To take on more of something than you can handle
Lose; get defeated
Try not to talk, especially if you plan to say something mean
To do something new or that hasn’t been done before
To speak first; to get others talking
To tell someone something important
When something good happens or gives relief
Bundle of nerves
Burn the candle at both ends
Burn the midnight oil
Burn your bridge
By word of mouth
Call it a day/Call it a night/Call it
quits
Can’t carry a tune
Can’t cut the mustard
Cat got your tongue
Change of pace
Chip on your shoulder
Chow down
Clear the air
Come clean
Cough up
Crack someone up
Cross your fingers
Cut corners
Dime a dozen
Dog days of summer
Don’t count your chickens before
they hatch
Don’t cry over spilled milk
Don’t put the cart before the horse
Drag your feet
Draw a blank
Dream come true
Drive someone up the wall
Drop in the bucket
Easier said than done
Every cloud has a silver lining
Everything but the kitchen sink
Fair and square
Feel like a million bucks
Forbidden fruit
For the birds
From rags to riches
Get hitched
Get in someone’s hair
Get off someone’s back
Being very nervous
To do too many things at once
To stay up late to get something done
To ruin a relationship with someone; to cause someone to think
badly of you
To spread information by telling others
Go home; leave somewhere; stop doing something
Can’t sing well
Something that isn’t good enough or not as good as expected
Keeping quiet
To do something different than usual
Being upset about something that happened in the past
to eat
To settle problems with others
Tell the truth
To give something that is difficult to part with
To make someone laugh
To hope something bad doesn’t happen
To do things too quickly, causing problems later
Anything that is common and easy to get
The hottest days of the summer season
Don’t count on something until it has actually happened
Don’t be upset about something you can’t change or control
Don’t do things in the wrong order
To do something slowly
To forget something
Finally being able to do something you’ve always wanted to do
To be very irritating to someone
A very small part of something big or whole
It’s easier to talk about doing something than actually doing it.
Be hopeful - bad times can lead to better days
Everything has been included
Something done fairly, without cheating
Feel wonderful
Something you want but can’t have
Meaningless or uninteresting
Going from poor or not having something to being rich or
having a lot
Get married
Irritate someone or make them angry
Stop bothering someone
Get up on the wrong side of the bed
Gone to the dogs
Head over heals
Heart of the matter
High on the hog
Hit the books
Hit the hay
Hit the nail on the head
Hit the sack
Hold your horses
Horse around
Jump down someone’s throat
Jump the gun
If you can’t stand the heat, get out
of the kitchen
In over your head
In the dark
In the doghouse
In the middle of nowhere
It’s a small world
It takes two to tango
Keep an eye on
Keep your chin up
Know the ropes
Leave someone high and dry
Lend me an ear
Let sleeping dogs lie
Let the cat out of the bag
Money talks
Mum’s the word
Neck and neck
Never bite the hand that feeds you
New kid on the block
Nose out of joint
Off limits
Off on the wrong foot
Off the hook
On its last leg
On pins and needles
On the fence
On the same page
To have a bad day
Run-down or needing repairs
Very excited; in love
The most important point or part
Rich
To study hard, especially for a test
To go to bed
To do or say something exactly right
To go to bed
Be patient
To play roughly
To get very angry and scold someone
To do something quickly without thinking it through
If you can’t handle a situation, get out of it
Having too much responsibility; not being prepared to do
something
Not knowing what is going on
In trouble
Lost
To see the same people in different places
It takes two people to argue or disagree; it isn’t always the fault
of one person
To watch something carefully
To stay happy and hopeful in a tough situation
To understand the details
Leaving someone alone with no help
To ask for someone’s attention
Leave a problem alone so that it doesn’t get worse
To tell a secret
Money can influence people to do what you want
To keep quiet; to not tell a secret
Even or equal
Don’t hurt someone that helps you
Someone new to a group or area
Irritated
Not allowed
Getting a bad start on a relationship or task
Not responsible for something anymore
About to quit or stop working; die
Nervous or anxious
Undecided about a situation
When everyone agrees on the same thing
On your mind
On your toes
On top of the world
Out of the blue
Out of the woods
Out on a limb
Over the top
Penny for your thoughts
Pick up your ears
Piece of cake
Pig out
Pipe down
Play it by ear
Pot calling the kettle black
Practice what you preach
Pulling your leg
Pull the plug
Put a sock in it
Put your foot in your mouth
Raining cats and dogs
Rise and shine
Rock the boat
Rome wasn’t built in a day
Run out of steam
Shake a leg
Sick as a dog
Skeleton in the closet
Slap on the wrist
Slip of the tongue
Smell a rat/Smell something fishy
Something up your sleeve
Southpaw
Spill the beans
Spitting image
Start from scratch
Sky is the limit
Taste of your own medicine
The ball is in your court
Something you’re thinking a lot about
Ready
Excited
When something suddenly or unexpectedly happens
Out of danger
When someone puts themselves in a risky situation
Excessive; too much
Tell me what you’re thinking
Listen very carefully
A task that can be completed very easily
To eat a lot very quickly
Be quiet
Deciding what to do as you go along; not having a plan before
doing something
Saying something bad about someone else when you also have
the same or a similar situation
Don’t just tell others how to act - be a good example for others
to follow
Tricking someone
To end something
Be quiet
To say something inappropriate
A very heavy and loud rain storm
To get out of bed and ready for work/school
To cause trouble
If you want something done right, it takes time
To run out of energy
Hurry
To be very sick
Something bad that has happened in someone’s past
A very mild punishment
To tell a secret or say the wrong thing
You can tell someone is being dishonest or devious or that
something is wrong
A hidden plan or idea
Someone who is left-handed
Tell a secret
Identical
To do something over from the beginning
There is no limit to what you can have or do
When someone is mean to you just like you were mean to
someone else
It’s your turn to make a decision
The bigger they are, the harder they
fall
The early bird catches the worm
The whole nine yards
Tie the knot
Til the cows come home
Tongue in cheek
To steal someone’s thunder
Turn up your nose
Two heads are better than one
Under the weather
Up for grabs
Variety is the spice of life
Water under the bridge
Wear your heart on your sleeve
When pigs fly
Wild and wooly
Wolf in sheep’s clothing
Word to the wise
You are what you eat
You can’t judge a book by its cover
You reap what you sow
An opponent may be better and harder to beat but when you
win, they take it much harder
The person who gets there early gets the best choice or gets
first in line
Everything; all of it
To get married
A long time
To say jokingly
To take credit for what someone else did
To act like you’re better than someone else
Two people can think of more ways to solve or do something
than just one person thinking alone
Sick
Available
The more different things you try, the more exciting life can be
Anything from the past that isn’t important anymore
To freely express your emotions; easily saddened or disappointed
Something that will never happen
Not having rules or laws
Someone who appears to be trustworthy but isn’t
Good advice
If you eat healthy, you’ll be healthy. If you eat unhealthy, you’ll
be unhealthy
You can’t make decisions about someone or something just by
looking at him, her or it
If you are nice to people, they will be nice to you. If you are
mean to people, they will be mean to you.